Winnie-the-Pooh introduces long-forgotten character Penguin for new sequel
Luke ChiltonTuesday 20 Sep 2016 11:21 am
A. A. Milne and Christopher Robin Milne playing with Winnie and Penguin
Sorry Piglet, Winnie-the-Pooh has a new best friend.
A long-forgotten character will be joining Winnie, Tigger and Eeyore in a special sequel to the classic children's book next month.
The new inhabitant of Hundred Acre Wood, named Penguin, will appear in a collection of stories called The Best Bear In All the World, released to celebrate Winnie-the-Pooh's 90th anniversary.
Penguin's tale, titled Winter: in which Penguin arrives, has been written by Brian Sibley, and was inspired by an obscure photograph of original author A.A. Milne and his son Christopher Milne (who inspired Christopher Robin).
The photo shows the pair playing with a cuddly penguin toy alongside the famous bear that would go on to become Winnie-the-Pooh.
'While pondering what other toys Christopher Robin might have owned but which were never written about, I remembered seeing a photograph of father and son playing on the nursery floor with Winnie-the-Pooh and ― a penguin!' Sibley explained in a statement.
He added: 'The thought of Pooh encountering a penguin seemed no more outlandish than his meeting a kangaroo and a tiger in a Sussex wood.'
It is believed that Christopher's mum Daphne Milne may have bought the toy at Harrods, the same London shop where she bought the other toys that inspired many of the series' characters.
But no one is sure why Penguin was left out of the stories that Milne wrote for his son.
The first Winnie-the-Pooh book was released in 1926 and was followed by The House At Pooh Corner two years later. The bear was adapted into a series of hugely successful Disney animated features, beginning in 1966.
MORE : Winnie the Pooh Day: 10 things you might not know about Winnie the Pooh
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